Rating: 
Summary: A sumptuous Renaissance feast!
Review: I saw this film approximately 20 times during my college years. Franco Zeffirelli's production was revolutionary for 1967, in using teenage actors for the tragic Romeo and Juliet, and his choices were perfection: the young Olivia Hussey is a heartbreakingly beautiful, vulnerable and courageous Juliet, while Leonard Whiting is a sensitive, poetically handsome and appealing Romeo. Zeffirelli's career as a director of opera is put to spectacular use here--each scene is meticulously crafted to be an accurate representation of an actual Renaissance scene. Stunningly beautiful clothing, furniture, food, glass, sculpture--it is an overwhelming feast for the eyes. The backgrounds are the preserved medieval towns of Northern Italy, and the gorgeous settings, such as the Borghese palace for the balcony scene, give the entire film the appearance of an animated Renaissance painting. Zeffirelli took some liberties with Shakespeare's original script,excising some of it for the sake of brevity, but unless you are a die-hard Shakespeare purist, it is a minor flaw in this unforgettable film. The other key roles are acted to perfection by classically-trained performers like Robert Stephens, Michael York and John McEnery (a fiery and very exciting Tybalt and Mercutio). I never saw it in a theater without the sound of many girls weeping aloud by the end of the film--I was often one of them. Leslie Howard was a better actor, and Leonardo DiCaprio/Clare Danes are more contemporary, but if you love beauty, this is THE quintessential Romeo and Juliet on film. END
Rating:
Summary: Shaped my young adult idea of love
Review: I was 14. I loved Jonathan Livingston Seagull, poetry by Schwartz, and John Denver. I also couldn't breath when Eric D. walked by. Our English teacher walked us through "The Good Earth", the 5 paragraph paper, and the last spelling tests we would ever take. She bravely asked hormonely overloaded teens to read Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet". As a reward she took our class to see Zefferelli's film. I laughed and I cried. It touched my soul more than anything or anyone had ever reached. I knew I'd seen the ideal love model.
And then Eric reached over and held my hand. I still cry thinking about it!
To this day some 30 years later, Olivia Hussey's eyes and the musical score, "A Time For Us" still arouses my adolescent soul. No other film has ever stirred my emotions in the same way.
Rating:
Summary: Lord Have Mercy...
Review: I was practically forced to see this movie in High School. When our English teacher announced that we would be watching Romeo & Juliet, the entire class sighed. About 30 seconds into the flick, Olivia Hussey graced us with her angelic presence. Sweet Lord in heaven I don't think I've EVER seen a more beautiful woman. My male counterparts were in awe. Unlike other sexy stars today who are actresses in their own mind & couldn't win a certificate of completion in a sock puppet show...Olivia Hussey was FANTASTIC. Let's not cut the rest of the cast short. Zeffirelli took a big risk casting no names in the title rolls, but Whiting & Hussey had a chemistry that looked so damn believable it appeared more as a reality based docudrama than acting. It has been 12 years since I first saw the picture & it still mesmerizes me. I cannot channel surf past this movie without watching it in its entirety. 1/2 way through, 10 minutes remaining...it doesn't matter. It may have something to do with the major crush that I STILL have on Olivia Hussey...(God how old is she now??? 51???) Really though, the movie is fantastic. Give it a chance. If it is your first Shakespeare film, you will not be disappointed. If you're a teeny bopper who was drawn into Baz Luhrmann version mainly due to Leonardo's box office draw, Please see the real thing. I'm not knocking Baz, but "Aint nothing like the real thing baby." For never was a story of more woe. Than this of Juliet and her Romeo. (Not Decaprio) ;)
Rating:
Summary: LOVE IT, LOVE IT!
Review: I was so excited when I did a search for this movie and found it on DVD. This is a must see for all ages. Any true fan of Shakespear knows this is the best movie version of R&J, DeCaprio just doesn't cut it as Romeo. So glad to see it on DVD and now to own it.
Rating: 
Summary: A good movie, but completely overrated
Review: I'm probably going to infuriate a lot of people for writing this review, but someone has to, and I'm not afraid to do so. I honestly believe that those who think Zefferelli's film is phenomenal do so for one of two reasons: 1. They believe that Shakespeare should only be performed in a Renaissance setting; or 2. They saw the movie when it came out in 1968, and were at an age when the tragic story of young love would be most effective. I first saw the Baz Luhrmann version when I was eleven. I saw the Zefferelli version when I was fourteen, an age when I read the play in high school and found a new interest in the story. It was also a time when it was cool to hate Leonardo DiCaprio, so I was very excited to learn that I would watching the Zefferelli version in class, because it was the "original" version and what is older is always supposed to be better when it comes to both Shakespeare and movies. Let's just say that I was disappointed. While Zefferelli should be commended on choosing two actors who were actually young people to play the title roles (it is always awkward to see 45-year olds portray confused teenagers), he should have picked two young people with better acting skills. Olivia Hussey, beautiful and child-like, certainly looks the part of Juliet but is not a very good actress. Leonard Whiting seems much more in love with himself than with his lady Juliet. The famous love theme, also, did not need to be presented in its entirety to be effective, so it creates an awkward place in the film when a tedious musical number is inserted admist the fast pace of which it takes for Romeo and Juliet to fall in love. Overall, the movie is a clash of Elizabethan standards and 1960's "edge"--meaning Beatle haircuts and sexuality expressed in more than the chaste movie kisses of the 1950's. However, these elements do not complement each other but seem out of place together. It is impossible to figure out exactly who Zefferelli was trying to cater to: while he seems to want to appeal to a younger audience with the casting, he employs every other method of alienating them with this movie. I wish now that I had never seen this version; otherwise I would still believe that it is a classic film.
Rating:
Summary: ANOTHER STAR
Review: It was a fantasy of words, of music, and acting. No, it was not acting, it was life. It was an outstanding film with everything included.
Rating:
Summary: Good movie!
Review: It's rare these days to find a good romantic movie like this one. I wish there were some newer remake of this movie. I think you'll experience the the way love should (or shouldn't) be in this movie. I also recommend the movie, Life is Beautiful, if you liked this one.
Rating:
Summary: No ordinary love story...
Review: Italian director Franco Zeffirelli ('Hamlet') stunned the world when he cast two young unknowns (Leonard Whiting and Olivia Hussey) to portray the star crossed lovers in 'Romeo and Juliet', but it was a gamble that resulted in one of the most popular motion pictures of our time, winning international acclaim and two Academy Awards. Shakespeare's classic romance comes to stunning visual life in a modern, young person's interpretation, bringing new vitality and a fresh insight to the most durable love story ever written.
And it is far better than the 1996 R & J remake (starring Leonardo Dicaprio and Claire Danes).
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful classic Shakespeare
Review: Like a lot of people my age, I first saw this as a 13 yr old student in the spring of '69...it had a huge influence on me then, one that has probably echoed through my life and my tastes in film (classics, Shakespeare, period movies, etc.) as I was at that very suggestable age. In all fairness, this movie is 36 years old and yes, the teen stars would be in their 50s by now. This means some aspects of the film are unavoidably dated...how couldn't they be? It was intended to be a Romeo and Juliet for the hip baby boom teenagers of the 60s! Visually, it exploited the similarity in "hippie" clothes and Beatle hairstyles to very real styles of the late 15th century, right down to the girls with their hair parted in the center and worn long and straight. (Check out ANY high school year book from the late sixties and early seventies!) At the time it came out, this was a revolutionary and remarkable idea; also casting real teenagers in the parts. Franco Zeffirelli originally produced this kind of a Romeo and Juliet on stage in '62, casting Judy Dench (yes, the "M" from the newer Bond movies...she was a young hottie 40 years ago), and using the same kind of pseudo real Renaissance setting. This '68 film followed his highly successful version of Taming of the Shrew with Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton. The costumes and location filming in R&J are still gorgeous and hold up very well. Few movies set in this Renaissance period even today are so accurate. Danilo Donati's costumes are just amazingly beautiful. (A whole generation of brides were married in high-wasted dresses after seeing this.) Nino Rota's musical score is lush and beautiful, slightly resembling his score for the Godfather. You still catch the theme from R&J on the radio sometimes (or in elevators); it's the ultimate in romatic scores. Olivia Hussey, 16 at the time of filming, is radiantly beautiful and has a wonderful, husky voice. She does a remarkable job despite her youth and lack of acting experience. I think she has influenced the way Juliet's have been cast and acted for the last 30+ years -- even Baz Luhrman has obviously seen and been affected by her. There is a BBC version of the play in which the actress virtually mimicks her line readings. Sadly, I think she was typecast from this role and never went anywhere careerwise. The last things I saw her in were pathetic horror films, like Pscho 4. I don't think Hollywood knew what to do with her lush, delicate beauty. Leonard Whiting is much less successful. Franco Zeffirelli is gay, and his intepretation of Romeo is clearly meant to be homosexual or at least bisexual. Leonard Whiting was a handsome, but slightly effeminate boy and he's not got nearly the grasp of the material or the acting ability of Olivia Hussey -- they seem mismatched. There is a subplot interpretation of Mercutio as having some kind of sexual attraction or relationship with Romeo. It is interesting, but unbalances the story a bit.( I didn't notice this when I was a teen, but as an adult viewing the film it is absolutely glaringly obvious.) I notice a lot of debate as to whether THIS or the Baz Luhrman film of '96 is the definitive version...I think that's stupid. Shakespeare has been around a long time. This is his most produced play. There is room for LOTS of difference interpretations. I have seen many others on the stage. And there will be billions more in the future. I like Baz Luhrman's version, although I think his creative inventiveness (which is wonderful) flys out of control by the end of the film; however it's good and interesting, a visionary treatment and it's very worthwhile to view BOTH of these films to get a sense of what it is to try and film Shakespeare. Zeffirelli's version offers a very pared down script, lots of authentic looking visuals and very exciting and well-staged fight sequences; plus gorgeous costumes and music. Olivia Hussey's Juliet is absolutely a classic, moving interpretation that I have never seen performed better on stage or in film. In short -- anyone who loves Shakespeare, or Romeo and Juliet, or lush period flicks, will totally be absorbed in this beautiful film. It's also a wonderful, easy-to-take, never-boring, introduction to Shakespeare and from there, his other works. Would I have become a Shakespeare buff at such an early age without having been introduced to the material this way? I doubt it!
Rating:
Summary: Franco Zeffirelli's Masterpiece
Review: Not only is 'Romeo and Juliet' Franco Zeffirelli's best film but it is without question the greatest Shakespeare film ever made and one of the five greatest films of all time. Every shot in this film is a work of art. Nino Rota's score is so powerful and hauntingly beautiful. The performances are excellent but it is Franco Zeffirelli's magic touch that makes this film so amazing. Zeffirelli brings a sense of urgency to every movement and every word spoken. This movie has to be one of the most underrated films ever made. If you love this movie watch Franco Zeffirelli's 1973 film 'Brother Sun, Sister Moon' - this film is almost as great as 'Romeo and Juliet' and it is just as powerful and beautiful.
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